False Hope
by RainDragon28
Summary: *Sequel to The Line Between Good and Evil* Hiccup misses the adventures. More specifically the Dragon Eye. To get it back, he asks Dagur for help, but the man's actions aren't exactly what he expected.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey! So some of you have been wondering if the last chapter from The Line Between Good and Evil was the last one, and the answer is yes. I'm sorry if it wasn't very clear.**

 **Anyway, I haven't much to say, so here we go! (chapters might be shorter, just so it takes less time to update ;))**

* * *

Toothless soared through the sky, the warm sunset in the background sending blinding light on Dragon's Edge. Hiccup was coming back from a meeting with Dagur, and to his surprise, things didn't turned in disaster.

They flew for the base, where the other riders were waiting for him.

Toothless landed on the platform and Hiccup dismounted immediately.

''Where have you been?'' Astrid asked, approaching him from deeper in the building. ''You left this morning without warning anybody. What were you thinking?'' You could tell the others were asking the same thing just by the look in their eyes.

''That's not exactly true...'' Hiccup answered, as Fishlegs came running in, holding a box in his hands.

''Hiccup! Hiccup! I-I got what you asked for!'' Fishlegs gasped, placing the box on the table that surrounded the fire pit.

Alright... When Hiccup doesn't warn Astrid about what he plans on doing, that usually means he's up to something, and it can't be good... never means good, actually.

''What is this?'' Ruffnut asked, approaching like everybody else.

''Oh! Don't tell me, don't tell me!'' Tuffnut cried, playing the guessing game.

''A box..?'' Snotlout said, arms crossed beside those two.

''I said, don't tell me!'' Tuffnut yelled, starting punching Snotlout.

Hiccup, Astrid and Fishlegs rolled their eyes in exasperation as Snotlout and Tuffnut began a fight and Ruff sat to watch.

''What's in it?'' Astrid asked, bringing back the subject.

Fishlegs smiled and opened the box, Dragon Eye lenses resting in the bottom of it.

''Dragon Eye lenses..? Would be greatly useful if we had the Dragon Eye that comes with it...'' Astrid said, leaving the conversation already. But she didn't get far when suddenly realized what was going on. ''Wait... Why are you taking these out..?''

''For the same reason I left early this morning.'' Hiccup informed her.

''And... What would that be, Captain Haddock?'' Astrid asked, crossing her arms.

''We're getting the Dragon Eye back.''

''Yeah... How do you plan on doing that, exactly?''

Hiccup raised an index for her to wait and pulled out his map, laying it on the table to have a look at it.

''Today I went to visit Dagur for a favor.'' Hiccup said, holding the Archipelago Map down. ''I told him that if he helps me get the Dragon Eye, I wouldn't try to bring him back on Outcast Shores.''

''Wait, you promised him that he wouldn't go back in prison..? Hiccup, he has to, that's the first reason we're out here, to capture Dagur and bring him back to Outcast Island where he can hurt no one.''

''I know that, it's just...''

''I know... You wanna see the best in people. But Dagur? He's a murderer. Do you believe there's still good in that man?''

''Yes. Look what he did for us when Ryker attacked. He helped us.''

''Because he knew that if he didn't returned the favor, we'd have him paid for kidnapping you. Lucky for him, since he helped us, we didn't... That and I guess the fact that you're _his_ enemy.''

Hiccup stayed silence for a second, registering all of it, asking himself if it was clever to trust Dagur for the near outcomes.

''Alright, I'll cancel everything tomorrow.'' he finally spoke.

''That's a great idea. Who knows what Dagur might be holding back for you.'' Astrid said, sensing that even though Dagur wasn't here, the Berserker had something in stock for Hiccup.

The sun was now down completely, Hiccup and Toothless sat on their roof, looking out at the shimmering stars from above. Despite the beauty of it, Hiccup lowered his head and sighed. Toothless looked down at his rider, wondering what could possibly be wrong with his best friend. He nuzzled him lovingly, his big green eyes staring in his.

''I'm okay, Bud... Just thinking things through.'' Hiccup reassured him.

From above a squawk rose and a blue Deadly Nadder came landing on their roof beside them. Astrid carefully dismounted and climbed close to her friend.

''You okay?'' she asked, kind of worried about him, for each time he was staring up to the stars meant he was thinking things through. But those things he was thinking weren't always good.

''Yeah... Just missing the adventures.'' he answered, his arms wrapped around his legs. ''When he discovered new species or followed maps... When we had the Dragon Eye for.''

''I understand...'' Astrid said, climbing up to sit beside him, ''Don't worry Hiccup, we'll get it back.'' Hiccup smiled to her kindly, thanking her for her support. ''Well, I should go to bed.'' Astrid said as she got up and climbed back on Stormfly. ''Hey. If you need to talk to someone. You know where to find me.'' And she went off.

Hiccup watched her go and focused back on thinking how he's gonna steal the Dragon Eye from Viggo. And he knew exactly how. But it had to be kept a secret. From everyone. Even Astrid.

He got up and climbed on Toothless and down they went, inside the hut. He had to do something first. Hiccup rushed to his desk and pulled out his notebook and charcoal pencil. On a sheet he wrote something addressed to the Dragon Hunters, for they were the ones that possessed the Dragon Eye right now. He was just hoping they were all home on their island. Finished, he attached the paper to Sharpshot's back leg, and the little dragon flew off, after Hiccup told him where and to who give the message.

''There, that's done.'' Hiccup said, speaking to Toothless. ''Now if I'm correct, these Dragon Hunters should receive it and meet Dagur's fleet at sea. As soon as enough ships have sailed out, we go to the island, grab the Dragon Eye and get out of there.''

Toothless turned his head on the side, wondering if his rider had gone mad for that plan was the best worst plan he had ever heard from him.

''Alright, Bud. Better get some sleep. We leave early tomorrow morning.''

Toothless let out deep noise coming down his throat.

''Yes. Alone.''


	2. Chapter 2

''Viggo!'' Ryker called as he rushed to his brother who was sitting in the same room that Hiccup had been tortured in a time ago, staring at the scripts the Dragon Eye was showing. Viggo rubbed his beard thoughtfully, as he wrote down what it said.

''Something wrong, brother?'' Viggo asked calmly, lifting up his head to meet his eyes.

''We got a word from the Dragon Riders, more specifically from Hiccup Haddock.'' Ryker informed, giving Viggo the letter they received. ''They say they want the Dragon Eye back and will meet us at sea with Dagur's fleet.''

''Yes, I can't read that...'' Viggo purred, '' Prepare the fleet, perhaps this is our chance to finish both of them once and for all.''

Ryker didn't say a word and nodded. He turned around and rushed out of the underground tunnels and started yelling the orders to the crew, even though it was the middle of the night.

''Assemble the fleet!''

...

Astrid and everyone else woke up that morning and joined at the Club House as usual. But something seemed wrong at the moment when she stepped inside the building. She was always the second to arrive... And she was the first that morning. Hiccup was always up before anyone else. And he wasn't there...

''Hiccup..?'' she called out, Stormfly waiting outside. ''Hiccup, you in here?'' She kept calling even though she knew he wasn't around here.

 _Maybe he overslept..._ she thought, for it would be a pretty good explanation for last night he had stayed up on his roof for some good hours.

So she went to pay a little visit at his hut, less worried when she saw the door closed. She pulled on the handle opening the door and looked up where his bedroom was and she could see the black form of Toothless sleeping on his lava bed and Hiccup's under the covers on his bed.

There, she had worried for no reason.

She sighed in relief and walked out of the hut, closing the door behind her to let him rest a bit more for he had had a rough evening yesterday. But the thing was it wasn't Hiccup and Toothless that lay on the wooden and lava beds upstairs... Actually, no one was sleeping there. Simply seeing what she wanted to see, Astrid did not realized or doubt that it were pillows covered of blankets.

...

Hiccup and Toothless soared though the air on their way to meet Dagur at sea. As expected, Dagur's fleet of at least fifteen ships sailed through the waters towards the Dragon Hunters' island.

Toothless landed on deck, growling at the Berserker soldiers that stood too close to him and Hiccup, for he still didn't trust them despite the fact Hiccup did. Hiccup dismounted and patted his best friends' head to calm him down.

''Hiccup!'' Dagur cheered, approaching his 'brother' for a hug. ''Are you sure you weren't followed?''

''Absolutely. I played disappointed so they would leave me alone and give me space.''

''Nice. Now, what's the plan?''

''I sent a note to Ryker, surely he's gonna inform Viggo. I wrote to meet at sea, and leave the Dragon Eye the most unguarded as possible.''

''Alright. But when do we know when he'll get here?''

''Sir!'' a man from the crew called, ''Ships, approaching from the north!''

''They already are...'' Hiccup spoke as he climbed on Toothless' back. ''Come on. You follow me with _one_ ship only so you don't get too much attention.''

As soon as told, Dagur gave orders to the rest of the crew and sailed the ship he stood on out of the way of the others as he followed Hiccup and Toothless flying high above the clouds for it was easy to see a Night Fury in the bright blue sky of the morning.

On the way to the enemy's island they went, and when the battle between Dragon Hunters and Berserkers seemed far enough, Hiccup and Toothless flew out of their hiding spot and flew close to the single ship.

It didn't take that much time and the island soon became visible. A couple hours and they would make it to shores.

...

''Where's Hiccup?'' Fishlegs asked as he walked in the Club House to have breakfast like everybody else.

''He's still in bed.'' Astrid answered grabbing a stick and a fish from the basket and placed it above the fire to roast it.

''You're sure?'' Tuff asked.

''Yeah, why?''

'''Cause we saw him fly away this morning.'' Ruff informed.

''Yeah, right...'' Astrid said, not taking any of it seriously. ''Like Hiccup would trick us by building pillow structures and fly away—''

Ruff and Tuff looked at her smugly.

Without losing another second, Astrid let down her roasting fish and ran to Hiccup's hut to check if he was there or not, like the twins said. She pulled on the handle opening the door and rushed up the stairs and quickly uncovered the pillows she had thought were Hiccup.

''No...'' she breathed out, realizing she's been foiled. ''That muttonhead..! How could he do this?''

She looked around, searching for something, anything that could help her know where he was right now. But then she remembered their conversation from last night and she knew exactly where he'd gone. She noticed his sword and shield were missing, which wasn't a bad thing but at the same time it was.

At least he was armed, that was the good news, and the bad news was it told her he was on a dangerous mission. And she had to get to him before it was too late.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi! I'm back! Not dead, everything's great! :D Shout-outs!**

 **...**

 **Looona: You're good. ;3**

 **Dimentional Phaser: Oh, don't worry. I'm not sure Dagur would want to go back after how Viggo treated him. :3**

 **Guest: I like it too. Plus, they look more like two brothers always fighting each other. :D**

 **1 Fan: Yep, there's a sequel. There's gonna be a sequel for that one too.**

 **AquaticDragon: Thanks ;) I already wrote all the other chapters so the next story might come fast as well.**

 **Guest: Thank u :3**

 **Eli: Yeah, I love it too. That's why I'm writing it XD**

 **Jo: :D**

 **Guest: Here you go! :)**

* * *

The ship's blade dug in the sand of the beach of the Dragon Hunters' island as it hit shores. Hiccup landed Toothless beside Dagur who managed to jump off the vessel. The man breathed in deeply just as if he would have done if he had made it to shores on Berk three years ago. His men were about to follow him but Dagur ordered them to stay there until they came back. None argued and did as told.

''So... Got any plans for later?'' Hiccup asked, walking beside him, Toothless following him closely, watching out for danger.

''Ah, first things first, brother!'' Dagur said, ''Let's start by seizing the Dragon Eye, then ask me that question again.''

Hiccup rolled his eyes, now wondering why he's _working_ with him. But he remembered pretty quickly. The promise he did to him, about him helping get the Dragon Eye and he returning his freedom, his right freedom, he meant it. For some reason, even though Dagur had been trying to kill him repeatedly, he trusted him. He wasn't able to explain why but he did. He had seen Dagur this way before, three years ago when they worked together to track down Toothless... not that he enjoyed it. It was kind of true when Dagur said they formed a great team. They did. And today, everything was about teamwork.

They finally made it to the center of the island, and Hiccup could see the tunnels leading underground, where he had last seen the Dragon Eye. He just hoped Viggo wasn't in there, or things would get a lot trickier. Many guards guarded the entrance, but that wouldn't a problem.

Both boys hid behind catapult boulders that lay on the ground near the forest and used them as cover for the moment.

''What's the plan?'' Dagur asked, taking out his double-headed battle axe.

Hiccup grabbed his shiny Gronckle Iron shield from under Toothless' wing and made sure his sword was there at his back.

''I'll go down there and search for the Dragon Eye.'' he explained, ''You have fun knocking out any Dragon Hunters.''

''Got it.''

So the first one to go was obviously Dagur. He shot out from their hiding spot and immediately attacked the guards to give Hiccup a way in.

As soon as the path was cleared, Hiccup rushed inside the underground tunnels; back to the place he had seen it. For Hiccup had excellent memory, finding his way was a piece of cake. The hard part would be escaping.

As he ran through the labyrinth, Hiccup caught sight of the dragon skin curtains and could only hope the Dragon Eye was still in that super secret room. Carefully he approached it and walked in, and there it was. On the exact same table, exact same place with the exact same little Terrible Terror... Poor little guy, he must be really unhappy in that cage. Then again, who would be?

Before grabbing the Dragon Eye that lay so still on the table in front of the cage, Hiccup unlocked the small door from the green cage, freeing the little dragon. The Terror let out sharp squawks of happiness and flew away the instant it was released. He watched it go, a weak smile growling on his lips.

''You might wanna focus on the task in hand, dear.'' a voice purred from behind him, sending shivers down his spine. Hiccup's eyes widened with fear.

Slowly, he turned around to face Viggo who stood close to the table, hands at his back, looking so calm and unalarmed.

''You thought it would've been that easy?'' Viggo asked, laughing at Hiccup's efforts. ''I know how you work and how you think, Hiccup. I know you now. But even after all we've been through, you still don't know me enough...''

''I'm not here for you...'' Hiccup spoke, as dangerously as he could.

''Oh, don't worry, I know exactly why you're here.'' Viggo purred, ''You even wrote it on the letter. And even if you wouldn't have. I would still know why you would be here...''

''Tell me, why is Dragon Eye so important to you? Why do you need it?'' Hiccup asked, speaking his mind.

''For the exact same reason you do.'' Viggo said, ''Dragons. That and because it belongs to me. So you can try to take it, but I wouldn't if I were you.''

''Why not?''

Viggo pulled out his sword, and on the blade was a purple substance, and Hiccup could guess it wasn't to simply put you asleep.

''You know what this is?'' Viggo asked, pointing his weapon at Hiccup. ''It's the deadliest and most painful of all poisons known to the world. The process is slow but causes so much pain. Not only to you, but to all your close ones. And when it enters your blood, the only thing you could wish for is to never have been born...''

''Then I'll take my chances...'' Hiccup simply replied as he grabbed the Dragon Eye on the table and ran like he had never before.

''What the...'' Viggo muttered, registering what just happened. It didn't take long for the man to follow the boy. Instead of taking the same corridor as Hiccup, Viggo took a shorter one and ended up standing right in front of the youth, blocking his way out.

''Hand over the Dragon Eye, Hiccup...'' Viggo ordered warningly, putting a hand forward for Hiccup to give it. But instead, Hiccup took out his sword, now armed with both Gronckle Iron shield and sword.

''Who's the one with the shield and sword now, Viggo?'' Hiccup said before striking at the man, their swords meeting again. Hiccup held the Dragon Eye with in the right hand, the one that hid behind the shield so Viggo couldn't grab it that easily. Another advantage he had was being left handed.

Frustrated by his words, Viggo swung his sword, knocking Hiccup's out of his hands, leaving him with his shield only. Hiccup watched his sword fly out of his hands, and focused back on his enemy.

''Good form.'' Viggo purred, before kicking his prosthetic, causing him to crash down on the ground. ''But not good enough.''

Viggo raised his sword and brought it down, only for his blow to be blocked by the shield and be backed away. Taking the chance, Hiccup got to his feet and grabbed his sword that lay not far from him. Back on his feet, Hiccup ran for the exit when he saw Viggo pulling himself back up and gone after him.

As soon as Hiccup saw Dagur, he took the Dragon Eye in his left hand and without thinking about the risks, threw it in the air for Dagur to catch it.

''Dagur!'' Hiccup yelled as it flew up and back down. Thankfully, Dagur let drop his axe and caught it with both hands.

Hiccup let out a sigh of relief and was about to join him but the fact that Viggo jumped above him made it impossible. The man had him totally pinned down to the ground, his sword once again out of reach, only his shield between both of them. Viggo pressed his poison sword under his chin.

Dagur looked down at his brother and then at the Dragon Eye.

''Dagur...'' Hiccup breathed from under Viggo's hold, the purple blade pressed on his throat.

Dagur took his time to choose wisely, between helping his brother, and running now that he had the Dragon Eye. His heart told him to do both, but Dagur preferred listening to himself, and his decision was clear.

''Sorry Hiccup... But I have plans. I'm sure you understand.'' Dagur apologized, holding the object in a hand. He grabbed back his weapon, and ran off, leaving Hiccup behind, under Viggo's grip.


	4. Chapter 4

Hiccup stared shocked, realizing how wrong he had been in trusting him. All the hopes he had...

Too angry to let him get away, Hiccup activated a trigger that shot a rope with a hook at the end, plunging itself in Viggo's stomach, but not deep enough to kill him, simply get him off.

''What the Hell..!'' Viggo cried out as he fell on the side, holding his stomach, trying to stop the bleeding by clawing the wound.

Hiccup grabbed his sword and placed it back in its sheath, and pulled the hook and rope back in the center of the shield.

''Sorry about that...'' Hiccup said as he went off after Dagur, running as fast as his one and half leg could carry him.

Viggo didn't try to stop him, not only because he hadn't the Dragon Eye, but because he knew he was good as dead. He had managed to cut him on the arm with his poison blade...

Behind the boulders they had been hiding with, Hiccup spotted Toothless wrapped up in ropes, his jaws tightly shut.

''Toothless!'' Hiccup cried out, collapsing beside his best friend. ''What has he done to you?'' But Hiccup didn't wait for an answer and pulled out his hunting knife to cut him free. Once free, Toothless roared and shook himself to get the feeling back. ''We need to stop Dagur before we makes it further out the Archipelago. Not to mention he has the Dragon Eye... ''

Toothless growled in agreement and insisted Hiccup to mount up. Without hesitating, Hiccup hopped on the saddle and they climbed up to the sky. A day went fast. The sun was already setting itself, and soon they wouldn't be able to see much but the moon and its reflection dancing on the water. Plus, the thick fog would rise soon...

''Come on, Bud...'' Hiccup said, and they soared above the ocean, back where Dagur and Ryker's fleet had met. But when they got there, there was no ship in sight, nothing. The fog was rising now and he could barely see the water from up there.

Toothless hovered above the place the two fleets had once been, giving Hiccup time to think things through and what to do now. Hiccup looked around, searching for any sign that told him in which direction Dagur could've sailed... But he found nothing. He put his head in his hands, ashamed of himself for trusting Dagur on this...

The moon was now high and the fog had vanished just like every ship. Toothless let out a worried growled, asking his rider what they should do next. Hiccup patted his buddy's scaly head and flew back to the Edge, now hoping the others wouldn't be mad for putting himself in danger without warning them.

...

Astrid stood out on the stables' landing and taking off platform, looking out at the sky just in case Hiccup and Toothless might suddenly appear.

''Are you guys ready or not?'' she asked, turning around to face the other riders saddling up their dragons.

''Astrid would you please calm down..!'' Snotlout begged, ''We know you're having a hard time but please don't release your anger on us! You're driving us crazy!''

''Sorry... I'm just worried.'' she said.

''That I can tell...'' he agreed.

''Hey, what are guys talking about?'' Tuffnut asked, placing himself between them. ''Can we bring the subject about where Hiccup is and why he left us?''

''Argh... NO!'' Astrid told him for the hundredth time.

''Great! Why did Hiccup leave us?'' Tuff asked.

''He didn't leave us!'' Astrid repeated again.

''Oh... Then why did he left?''

''Ugh...''

''Hey guys!'' Fishlegs called, pointing out at the dark sky. ''I see something!''

''Two late guests!'' Tuff spoke, ''Clearly they're not aware of the debate etiquette...''

Toothless came down and landed on the stables' platform, close to his friend.

''Hiccup!'' the twins shouted joyfully.

''Where have you been?'' Fishlegs questioned.

''Why did you leave without warning us?'' Snotlout asked.

Hiccup didn't answer right away, for he looked at Astrid that stayed arms crossed at the back, clearly mad at him for leaving them behind and putting himself in danger.

He dismounted and approached her. ''Astrid, I-''

''Save it. I don't feel like talking to you right now...'' she snapped and went off, back to her hut, now that he was back.

Hiccup had trouble taking this in. Despite his heart telling him to talk to her anyway, he walked back to his hut to get some rest, his head low with Toothless following him closely. When he entered his residence, he remembered the pillow structures he had build to foil his friends, and he couldn't deal with himself at the moment. Even though telling himself continually that he did the right thing, that he protected his friends wasn't a mistake, he still felt ashamed and had difficulty living with himself at the time. And he didn't know what to do to make that feeling go away...

His breath quicken, his fist tightened and his brows lowered. And as soon as anger won over him, he started punching the hard wooden wall, injuring himself in the process. Toothless stared at his rider, lowering his head in fright for he had never seen him that way.

He kept punching the wall until his knuckles bled badly. When there was no strength left in his arm and realized there was no goal to all this, he stopped and took the time to calm down.

How could he lose it all? Not only had someone betrayed him, and lost the Dragon Eye, but Astrid was now rejecting him and he couldn't stand that...

Hiccup finally lay down on his bed, an arm to cover his eyes.

But that didn't last long for he remembered what all of this was about. The Dragon Eye. Which wasn't in the right hands at the moment... He had to get it back.

He got out of the bed and walked up to his desk, looking down at the map resting on the wooden surface. He wrapped a cloth around his hand to cover his bloody knuckles as he searched where Dagur could possibly be going. If he hadn't seen any ship around the Dragon Hunters' island, that probably meant he was sailing south...

Without losing anymore time here, he grabbed his satchel, in which he would place the Dragon Eye in when he gets it back from Dagur. And despite the fact of knowing that he was about to leave his friends here, again, Hiccup climbed on the saddle and went off.

* * *

 **It's Hiccup's birthday today! Let's wish him a good day, and hope he doesn't die for what is to come next :D**


	5. Chapter 5

Hiccup flew out, turning around to look back at his friends he was leaving behind once again. As if he couldn't feel anything, he kept on going, focusing on his mission. Toothless flew as fast as his two great black wings could beat, knowing what an importance the object was to his rider. But at the same time, he was wondering if Hiccup had lost his mind, for he wasn't the kind to do such dangerous things like going out on his own without warning his friends of where he's going or what he's going. Maybe he _had_ lost his mind...

''Relax, Bud. Trust me, if I'm right, we should be back home by sunrise, with the Dragon Eye.'' Hiccup told Toothless, patting his head as he flew south.

An hour or so later, Toothless spotted an armada in the distance thanks to his echolocation ability, and landed on a near sea stack on which he would rest while Hiccup figured out how to get what he wanted without being caught.

''Great job, Bud...'' Hiccup congratulated his buddy, rubbing his dragon's dark scales. ''Now... How are we gonna get in..?'' he wondered as he pulled out his spyglass to get a better look. To his surprise, all torches were out on every ship, and every soldier seemed to be asleep. Perfect. Even though it was bizarre, they swooped in without thinking it might be a trap. ''Come on, Bud. We're getting what we came for now.''

 _You mean what_ you _came for..._ Toothless growled in dragon-tongue before taking off towards the Berserker fleet, hoping none was awake while he would search the ship.

Toothless flew low, close to the water, and hid on the side on the ship, his claws digging in the wood so he wouldn't fall. Hiccup activated the auto tail so in case something went wrong, Toothless could fly away without any problem.

Climbing onboard, Hiccup made carefully his way through the sleeping soldiers, searching for the trap to go under deck, trusting that Dagur would keep it under deck. But that wasn't easy to find in this mess of baskets and wooden boxes laying everywhere on deck. Plus, the fact that he hadn't seen these kinds of regular vessels in a long time made it quite hard.

But at the end he found a small handle on the floor of the boat and kneeled down before it, thinking if it was a good idea to do this after all, if it was worth it. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. He opened the trap and slid half inside for Toothless gave him a worried growl, holding Hiccup back for a second.

''Toothless, I'll be alright...'' Hiccup let him know, ''You cover me.'' And he slid down completely, closing the trap over his head as he disappeared.

Toothless nodded hesitantly and stayed low as he watched the most important thing in the world to him slid out of his sight. The dark dragon's eyes narrowed at any movements he caught.

Hiccup watched carefully were he stepped, for he didn't want to make things trickier than they already were. If he wakes up those soldiers above, he could easily be trap down here and Toothless could get caught and everything would be his fault.

A lot of objects sat down here. Tables, chairs, baskets, boxes, curtains, name it. But what Hiccup was looking for was something unique.

He searched around, the ship's movement making the wood around him crack as he looked. A sudden little box, big enough to put the Dragon Eye in laid on a table in the center of the place. Hiccup put down his hunting knife he had pulled out if anything happened on the table to investigate the special box. He turned it around, searching for the lock. He tried to open it with his bare hands but it was no use, the thing was too strong and only the key could open it.

Luckily, there was a key lying at the bottom of a bole not far from him and it fit perfectly. But as he opened it, and checked inside, all there was in it were jewels stolen from Trader Johan.

''Looking for this..?'' Dagur asked from behind, the Dragon Eye in hand, guarding the exit just so Hiccup didn't try running away.

''That doesn't belong to you...'' Hiccup said threateningly, gesturing at the object in hand.

''Oh, it does now...'' Dagur sang.

Hiccup eyed his hunting knife, the only weapon he had brought with him, resting on the end of the table, way closer to Dagur that him. Without thinking, Hiccup threw himself on it, so did Dagur. Luck wasn't with the youth at that moment, for Dagur got hold of it first.

Slowly they came back where they were previously, Dagur now armed with his knife... And thing was, Dagur was excellent at knife throwing, and never missed his target.

''Ah, Hiccup... you should've stayed with your books...'' Dagur spoke, examining the blade carefully, making sure it was sharp enough. ''Real life can get... messy.'' he pointed the end at Hiccup, in a way to fright to lad.

''I'm not afraid of you... And I'm not leaving without that.'' Hiccup informed him.

''I admire your bravery but fighting for the Dragon Eye? I'm afraid that's a lost cause.'' Dagur spoke. ''I got to know you better, Hiccup, since _peace_ settle between us, you know. I know your friends aren't with you. You're here, alone, to protect them. You lie to them. Foil them... Tell me, is that how you Dragon Riders work?''

Hiccup glared at him, knowing that all he was doing was try to anger him and make him lose control of himself, so he couldn't think right anymore. But that wasn't going to happen. Of course it wasn't. He would make it out, with the Dragon Eye. Leaving the object between _that_ man's hands would be a big mistake. Not only would he possess it, but he would run out of the Archipelago completely, and never come back. And that wasn't something that would soon happen.

''I'm simply keeping them safe, that's all...'' Hiccup answered, careful with each word he said.

''Uh... I thought you knew better, coming here alone... That isn't the cleverest plan of all. You should know that better than anyone.''

Hiccup didn't answer and searched around for anything useful that he could bring into play to get out of here before it was too late. He noticed not that far from his forehead and neither from Dagur's, an oar, hanging by the ceiling.

''You know what your problem is, Hiccup?'' Dagur continued, ''You're too selfless.'' He turned the knife around to hold it by the blade. ''Always putting the others before you... Maybe someday you'll realize, that their lives aren't worth to fight for...''

''What do you want.'' Hiccup said, more of a statement than a question, trying to get to the point.

''Oh, there are many things I want. You want me to name them all?'' Dagur asked, but got the answer just by the look of his brother's face. ''Of course not...''

''Get to the point.''

''Simple. I won't kill you, if,'' he said, ''you accept to join me.''

Hiccup was taken back, and didn't quite know how to react, but the words came to him either way.

''Betray my friends, and join you?'' he said, ''That's the most ordinary thing you could ever ask for...''

Dagur wasn't expecting Hiccup to anyway. ''It's a shame, you know... I mean, we could've really made a formable team, you and I.''

''Maybe.'' he said, ''but I choose wisely.'' He lifted up his arm and shove the oar forward, hitting Dagur in the forehead, knocking him out for a second.

Even though a second isn't long, Hiccup ran towards the exit, grabbing the Dragon Eye that lay on the floor after Dagur dropped it. He climbed up the stairs without looking behind, but as he was about to open the trap, a hand wrapped itself around his ankle, making him trip over and hit his lower jaw against one of the stairs leading up deck.

Now on top, Dagur tried seizing back the Dragon Eye Hiccup was holding behind his back, for he didn't have any weapons on him anymore to force Hiccup to hand it over.

''Hey, give it back!'' Dagur ordered as Hiccup tried to hold him as far away from him as possible as he laid on the floor, his metal leg pushing in the Berserker's stomach to make him back off.

With his good leg, Hiccup gave him a kick in the jaw, and the man backed off at last, crying out the pain.

''That's for the betrayal,'' Hiccup let know as he pulled himself up.

Without losing another second, he rushed up the stairs and lifted up the trap, and to his surprise, even though all the talking and fighting from bellow, no Berserker soldier seemed to have woken up. But Hiccup didn't take time to figure out how that was possible for Dagur would be after him... right now.

Hearing the thuds from below, Hiccup rushed to get out of the hole in the floor and ran where he had left Toothless.

But he was stopped when an arrow came plunging itself in the mast of the ship, stopping Hiccup from making one more step.

''That was a warning shot.'' Dagur spoke, aiming his crossbow at Hiccup, ordering him to turn around slowly. ''The next one goes between your eyes...''


	6. Chapter 6

The gang left Dragon's Edge a couple minutes after Hiccup, following him and Toothless, wondering where exactly he was going without telling them. It was actually Astrid's idea, after she saw him leave, watching him from the shadows. She knew he wouldn't give up and she had to make sure that he didn't get himself killed in the process. But every second they flew, he seemed to get further, and soon he became invisible in the dark sky. It wasn't like Astrid didn't expect that to happen. Toothless was a Night Fury, and Hiccup probably wanted to get wherever he was going as fast as possible.

''Ugh... I should never have been so hard on him... I should have known he was just doing this to keep us safe,'' Astrid whispered to herself, remembering the nasty stuff she said to him earlier.

''Tell me about it...'' Tuffnut spoke on Belch from behind her.

''He's just Hiccup being Hiccup, he can't help it...''

''Truer words, A. Truer words...''

''Tuffnut!''

''Sorry, just trying to help you work through,''

She sighed heavily, focusing back on the job of figuring out where Hiccup was going.

''Why do you think Hiccup went south? What could he possibly have to do over there?'' Fishlegs asked.

''He must be after the Dragon Eye,'' she said, ''that's the only explanation to why he circled that area in the water, probably the Hunters' fleet location.'' She took out the map she found in Hiccup's room and unrolled the paper to get another look at it.

''But how does Hiccup know the fleet is there?'' Snotlout questioned.

''Perhaps he observed them go south...'' Astrid said, looking back at the gang.

''Wow, we could use that cleverness of his a lot more often,'' Ruff commented.

''Look, we don't have time for that guys. Right now, we have to find him and Toothless before they get themselves killed.'' she added. ''Fishlegs, you have any idea where we are right now?''

Fishlegs pulled out his own map and looked around, trying to figure out their location.

''Oh, I know where we are without that stupid map...'' Snotlout spoke.

''Oh, really?'' Astrid said, ''Where are we, exactly, Snotlout?''

''Right in the middle of your circled area on your map,'' he said, pointing at the vessels floating in the sea.

''What the—isn't that Dagur's fleet?'' Astrid whispered, hovering a good distance from the massive armada like the others.

''I thought Hiccup was after the Dragon Eye?'' Fishlegs whispered.

''He is.'' Astrid answered him, ''But the Hunters aren't the ones who have it between their claws at the time...''

''Does this mean, Dagur is against us, again?'' Snotlout spoke, ''Great. Now I'll be seeing Evil Dagur in my dreams for the next month, just like with Evil Heather...''

''Come on you guys,'' Astrid called, ''Hiccup must be on one of those ships for certain.''

They landed on the same sea stack Toothless landed on, and waited for some movement on board, just to confirm Hiccup and Toothless were onboard of one of the ships.

''I don't see anything,'' Ruff stated, bored from staring at the calm fleet floating on a calm ocean.

''What if they got captured?'' Tuff questioned.

''Would you two stay quiet for ten second..!?'' Astrid whispered back as loud as she dared.

''Fine. You don't have to get so bossy...'' Ruffnut murmured, laying her chin on her dragon's head and relaxed there, staring at the water before her.

They stayed there for a while; Astrid convinced that Hiccup was there. None argued for they knew the consequences if they did. Laying flat on their dragons they watched, and as they were almost falling asleep on the sea stack, they saw movement on the head-ship and all spun straight on their dragon's back, attentive for the next orders from their temporary leader, Astrid.

But she didn't say a word yet, even though knowing the others were just waiting for that.

''What are we doing, Astrid?'' Snotlout asked, unable to believe she wasn't reacting. ''Let's go down there and grab him!''

''Shh..!'' they all hissed.

Hiccup spun out of the hole in the deck, the Dragon Eye in hand, running across the ship filled with sleeping danger.

 _That's a big risk he's taking..._ Astrid said mentally, biting her lower lip.

From the same spot he came out from, came Dagur the Deranged, a crossbow in hand. He placed an arrow in place and pulled on the trigger, the whistling noise from the flying arrow bypassing Hiccup's head by only an inch and plunging itself in the thick wood of the mast. Even though the riders were pretty far, they could still see the frightened expression on their friend's face and they all knew it was the right moment to interfere, for Hiccup's life depended on it. Dagur wasn't known to be a gentleman, and he wouldn't hesitate to shoot the next one between his eyes.

''You all stay here.'' Astrid ordered, as she noticed all of them prepare to take to the sky after her.

''Oh come on... Why?'' Snotlout complained, for he had been waiting like all the others for the moment to bounce.

''Because element of surprise is what I'm using right now.'' she said before taking off, drifting in the wind as delicate as a butterfly.

Down she dived, towards the soundless battle below on deck of the Berserker ship. And the closer she came, the wider Stormfly's claws opened.

...

Hiccup didn't quite know what to do at the moment... If he made any sudden noise, things would get a lot more difficult than it already was. He wakes up all those blood-thirsty soldiers under Dagur's command; he's a dead man, that's for sure. They wouldn't mind killing him on the spot, right here, right now.

He slowly turned around, hands in the air after have placed the Dragon Eye in his satchel. And as he did, something high in the air caught his attention, but he didn't show it and faced Dagur, who totally was unaware of anything.

''That's a good boy...'' Dagur said, still aiming at Hiccup with his crossbow, the arrow already in place, waiting to be fired. ''Now, you either surrender the Dragon Eye, or yourself. Your choice..!''

''If you believe I'm surrendering _anything..._ You're wrong.'' Hiccup spoke, unafraid of Dagur, even though the man could simply pull on the trigger.

''Normally, I would just kill the one speaking and take from him what I want,'' Dagur spoke, ''But you don't only possess the Dragon Eye, but also some _very_ useful information that I could use,'' he continued, ''With your life on the line, you have no choice left... You might want to quit now.''

''Why would I do that?'' Hiccup replied, ''When I'm winning?''

Dagur gave him a confused look, lowering his crossbow, and before he understood what was going on, Hiccup flew up in the air, held between the claws of a blue Deadly Nadder, mounted by a golden haired girl.

''What?!'' Dagur shouted in surprise, not at all expecting any other Dragon Rider to interfere. And as he yelled, the armada of Berserkers woke up, all confused, wondering what their chieftain was doing up on deck, yelling in the middle of the night. ''Astrid?!''

''Gotcha!'' Astrid cheered, as soon as she caught Hiccup.

Dagur watched them circle, and from the corner of his eye, he could see the dark figure of his brother's Night Fury spun in the air after the Nadder.

''What?! _Toothless_ can't fly on his own! That's cheating!'' he cried out, watching them go away, disappearing in the thick fog floating above the water. And when he couldn't see anything at all, he burst out yelling and laughing in frustration, moving around crazily, throwing objects and men in the water. ''GOOD FOR YOU HICCUP! GOOD FOR YOU! BUT DON'T THINK YOU'VE SEEN THE LAST OF ME! 'CAUSE I'LL COME BACK FOR YOU, AND I WILL HUNT YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU'VE DONE! YOU HEAR ME!?''

...

Stormfly dropped Hiccup when she saw Toothless fly under and ready to catch him. Hiccup fell on his buddy's spiky back and made his way to the saddle, clicking his prosthetic in place.

''Yeah, I hear you Dagur...'' he whispered to himself, looking back at the vanishing Berserker fleet.

''Care to tell me what you were thinking?'' Astrid spoke, coming down flying beside him.

''I gone to get the Dragon Eye back, that's all.''

''No that's not. ''

''Dagur turned on me, alright! I couldn't let him get away like that!''

''You know what, we'll talk about that when we get home.''

Hiccup didn't say another word and he and Toothless shot forward, leaving them behind, again.

The rest of the gang stayed silence for a minute until someone spoke her mind...

''Anybody noticed he's gone mad..?'' Ruffnut said, asking if anybody noticed too.

''Hiccup hasn't gone mad...'' Fishlegs laughed nervously. ''He's just, well...''

''Mad Hiccup!'' Tuffnut spoke, moving his hands and fingers in a dramatic way. ''It's a good title for a song, I'll work on it when we get home, of course after I'm finished with The Skrill is Gone.''

''Of course Hiccup can get mad sometimes... Sort of,'' Snotlout said, unsure of himself.

''Yeah, he does,'' Astrid agreed, ''But he never expresses it on us...''


	7. Chapter 7

The gang finally made it back to Dragon's Edge, way after Hiccup and Toothless.

Hiccup was waiting in the Club House, sitting on the surface around the fire pit, a cup of water in hand.

The other riders landed outside the building and came in, leaving their dragons outside for there was simply not enough space for them.

Astrid walked up to her friend, feeling kind of guilty for talking to him in such a way earlier. But he spoke before she could say a word.

''Look, I know what I did wasn't right... I should've told you,'' Hiccup spoke, ''I'm sorry...''

Astrid was taken back and what he meant was absolutely true, but she smiled either way and sat beside him.

''I know what you did, you did it to protect all of us,'' she said. ''Now what you did, fly away without letting us know, wasn't your cleverest plan, I have to admit...''

Hiccup gave a small laugh and continued, ''Yeah... Guess I wasn't thinking clearly...''

''I can't disagree on that,''

''Sorry I let you down... I should never have gone after the Dragon Eye...''

''Speaking of which, did you get it..?''

Hiccup smiled and took the satchel placed beside him and gave it to her. Astrid took it, looking at him suspiciously and opened the bag, the Dragon Eye lying in the bottom of it.

''No way!'' she cheered, unable to believe he had made it.

''Sorry, but I couldn't help overhearing your conversation, because I was eavesdropping...'' Snotlout said, ''If you were simply after the Dragon Eye, why didn't you involved all of us in this mission?''

''That's my business,''

''Anyway,'' Astrid interrupted, ''Why don't we check out if it works well, after all it's been through?''

''That's an idea,'' Hiccup said, ''Toothless,''

Toothless cracked an eye opened and got up, stretching out his legs and wings before coming. Hiccup placed lenses he knew worked with the Night Fury's glow in it an put it in front of his buddy's mouth. The purple fire lighted through, and scripts appeared on the wall, the same ones from when they first unlocked it. They didn't need the key for when Viggo used the glow of the Flightmare, the mechanism unlocked forever and the Snow Wraith tooth wasn't quite useful anymore.

''Well, at least it works,'' Astrid stated.

''Yes!'' the twins cheered from behind, with Fishlegs, ''Back in the saddle, baby!''

''There is one thing we need to do though...'' Hiccup said.

''What's that?'' Fishlegs asked.

''Viggo and Dagur both know now that we're the ones who have the Dragon Eye, and I don't think they're gonna leave it that way...'' he explained.

''What are you saying?'' Snotlout questioned.

''I'm saying we better watch our backs,'' Hiccup continued, ''because the next outcomes, might be nothing we've ever faced before.''

The team looked at each other, unexpectedly taking it seriously.

''Are you saying we could—'' Tuffnut began.

''Yes Tuff. We can die.'' Astrid finished for him.

The group was quiet once again, kind of frightened by what Hiccup and Astrid were telling them.

''I wouldn't worry if I were you. We got plenty of time to train ourselves. Now just get back to your huts and get some sleep, it's been a long night,'' Hiccup said, and they all went off, except for him and Astrid.

Hiccup turned to face Astrid when all the others disappeared.

''I had a lot of fun tonight,'' Hiccup said, walking with her out of the Club House for a morning walk around the base.

''Fun? Almost getting killed was fun..?'' she laughed.

He looked at her awkwardly, shrugging. ''Yeah...''

Astrid laughed, taking his hand as they walked. ''It was kind of fun,'' she admitted.


End file.
